Strap buckle



March 14, 1967 .J. A. MULLAN STRAP BUCKLE Filed Aug. 10, 1964 INVENTOR.

ATTORNEY Fig. 7

United States Patent Ofiflce 3,308,516 STRAP BUCKLE Joseph A. Mullan, Westminster, Colo., assignor to Rose Manufacturing Company, Denver, Colo., a corporation of Colorado Filed Aug. 10, 1964, Ser. No. 388,495 9 Claims. (Cl. 24-75 and improved two-component strap buckle which is espeespecially for safety harnesses for infants such as childrens safety belts; and which for such use is characterized by being quickly and easily connected and disconnected by an adult, but will remain connected and cannot ordinarily be disconnected by an infant when he is wearing the safety belt.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved two-component strap buckle which is especially adapted for childrens safety belts and also for other uses where two strap ends are joined together, the buckle being of a simple, symmetrical construction adapted to neatly fit about a childs waist, but with the components being irreversible in their manner of connection and thereby reducing the chances of a twisted strap when being connected.

Another object of the invention is to provide a novel and improved light-weight strap buckle of a simple, symmetrical form which may be manufactured as a low-cost unit by low-cost production methods.

Further objects of the invention are to provide a novel and improved strap buckle which is a neat-appearing, lowcost, Versatile, rugged and durable unit.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, all of which more fully hereinafter appear, my invention comprises certain constructions, combinations, and arrangements of parts and elements as hereinafter described, defined in the appended claims and illustrated in preferred embodiment in the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of a pair of strap ends being interconnected by the improved strap buckle.

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the body of the buckle illustrated at FIG. 1, but with the strap removed.

FIGURE 3 is a front elevational view of the tongue of the buckle, illustrated at FIG. 1, but with the strap removed.

FIGURE 4 is an end elevational view of the body of the buckle as taken from the indicated arrow 4 at FIG. 2.

FIGURE 5 is a sectional elevational view of the body of the buckle as taken from the indicated line 55 at FIG. 4.

FIGURE 6 is a sectional elevational view similar to FIG. 5, but showing the tongue within the body and with broken lines indicating a rotative movement of the tongue as when it is being inserted or is being removed from the body.

FIGURE 7 is an isometric exploded view of the com ponents forming the buckle.

The present invention was conceived and developed to meet the need for a reliable buckle for a childs safety belt. It was recognized that the design of a buckle for a childs safety belt should meet certain criteria. For example, it should be a light-weight, but strong unit. It should be of a construction which would be easy for an adult to fasten or unfasten, but one which would be diflicult for an infant or a small child to unfasten when he 3,308,516 Patented Mar. 14, 1967 is moving about and is playing and fumbling with the belt and buckle. Also, the buckle should be arranged to prevent it from being fastened in a reverse manner as with a twisted strap. These, and other criteria, are well met in the improved design, a simple symmetrical unit having separable body and tongue components, which will now be described in detail.

Referring more particularly to the drawing, FIG. 1 thereof illustrates the improved two-component buckle B, a body 10 and tongue 11 which are attached to the ends of straps 12 and 13, respectively; and when the body and tongue are interengaged, they connect the two strap ends together. The buckle, when interengaged, appears as a fiat, symmetrical unit, and the body 10 includes a rectangular head 14 at its center and a comparatively narrow, rectangular strap eye 15 outstanding from one side thereof. The tongue 11 includes a similar rectangular strap eye 16 which outstands from the other side of the body head 14 when connected thereto to complete the symmetrical form.

The straps 12 and 13 are threaded through the respective eyes or loops 15 and 16. These straps may be secured on these eyes in any suitable manner such as that illustrated at FIG. 1. For example, the end of the strap 12 is illustrated as being overlapped and stitched as at 17, while the end of the strap 13 is illustrated as being secured by a sleeve fastener 18, but any other type of fastener may also be used for this purpose.

The rectangular buckle head 14 is a flat member having a longitudinal slot therethrough to receive the tongue and other components as described. It is formed by folding the longitudinal edges of a back plate 19 to provide short longitudinal spacer flanges 20 and the longitudinal edges of a front plate 21 as short longitudinal cover flanges 22. The cover flanges 22 snugly overlap the back plate flanges 20 as clearly illustrated at FIG. 4. These plates are held together by a pair of rivets, a holding rivet 23 at one side, and a post n'vet 24 at the other side. The rivets are positioned at the vertical center of the buckle head and at the approximate quarter points thereof. In addition to holding the plates 19 and 21 together, the holding rivet 23 is used to secure the strap eye 15 and the post rivet 24 is used for connecting with the tongue 11, all as will be more fully described.

The strap eye 15 is formed as a narrow, rectangular loop of metal having a transverse width substantially the same as the transverse width of the buckle head 14 and a thickness which corresponds with the slot spacing between the plates 19 and 21. A finger 25 outstands from one side of the eye 15 and projects into the slot of the buckle head. It includes an orifice 26 wherethrough the holding rivet 23 extends to afiix the strap eye 15 into the buckle head, the finger being proportioned to abut the strap eye 15 against the transverse side of the buckle head as illustrated at FIG. 5.

The tongue 11 is formed as a T-shaped member, with the arms of the member constituting a strap eye loop 16 substantially the same as that of the strap eye 15, and with the leg of the T-shaped member forming a hookshaped insert 27 outstanding from one side of the loop 16. This insert 27 is adapted to be inserted into the slot of the buckle head 14 between the plates 19 and 21 and to be connected with the post rivet 24 when the two buckle components are interengaged. The insert 27 is a flat member having a hook slot 28 at one side thereof which extends from the base of the insert, adjacent the strap eye loop, to angle into the center portion of the insert at an approximate 45 degree slope. The end of this insert is rounded as at 29 to form a neat-appearing balanced unit.

The insert 27 and hook slot 28 are proportioned to hold the edge of the strap loop 16 of the tongue against the side of the buckle head when the tongue is connected with the buckle, with the insert therein being hooked to the post rivet 24. It follows that connection and release of the tongue from the buckle must be eflectuated by the combined movement of the tongue and a portion of the strap loop 16 thereof into the buckle head and of a partial rotation of the tongue, as in the manner clearly indicated by broken lines at FIG. 6. This connection and release movement is inhibited by a U-shaped leaf spring 30 which is positioned in the slot of the buckle head with the legs 31 of the spring lying against the flanges 20 of the back plate 19 to abut against the inner edge of the fixed strap loop 15. The U-base of the spring thus extends transversely across the slot and lies between the rivets 23 and 24 at a position where it will be deflected by the rounded end 29 of the tongue insert 27 whenever the tongue connects with the buckle. Accordingly, spring 30 is adapted to urge the tongue outwardly and to thereby effectuate a locking action of the tongue upon the post rivet 24.

While it is desirable to form the strap buckle as a symmetrical unit about its longitudinal axis, it is also desirable to restrict the manner in which the tongue is inserted into the buckle to prevent connecting the buckle with a twisted strap. Accordingly, a short barrier flange 33 is positioned transversely across the buckle slot at one side of the post rivet 24. This barrier is easily formed by making a U-shaped cut in the back plate 19 and folding the material therein from the surface of the plate as a flange with such operation being eifectuated by a simple stamping operation. The barrier flange 33 is preferably angled slightly and directed inwardly and towards the center of the buckle slot, as illustrated at FIGS. and 6, to assist in directing the buckle tongue into the slot and past the post rivet 24 at the opposite side of the post. It is also desirable to angle the U-base portion 32 of the spring 30 in the opposite direction to obtain a better pressure action of the spring on the tongue, which tends to urge the tongue to a centered position on the post 24.

The combined insertion and rotation movement of the tongue 11 into the buckle to connect and disconnect the buckle as illustrated and hereinbefore described, though very simple, provides for a comparatively secure locking of the child in the belt. In the first place, such is not a natural combination of movements which would occur between the buckle and tongue, when a belt is being worn by a child, nor are such movements likely to occur when the child is playing with the belt. Also, these connecting or disconnecting movements are necessarily directed against the action of the spring 30, and it follows that a child will have considerable difficulty in disconnecting the belt when it is being worn by him. On the other hand, connection and disconnection of the belt onto and off from a child by an adult are very simple operations once the movements are understood by the adult.

The tightness with which the tongue will be held in the buckle and the actual pressure required to connect and disconnect it may be easily regulated by the strength of the spring 30 and the buckle may be designed to be practically impossible for a child to disconnect it once it is put on the child, but at the same time, it may still be easily connected and disconnected by an adult. Actually, it was found that a surprisingly light-weight spring would be adequate for the primary purpose of the buckle, that is, incorporating it into a childs safety belt.

I have now described my invention in considerable detail, and it is obvious that others skilled in the art can devise and build alternate and equivalent constructions which are within the spirit and scope of my invention. Hence, I desired that my protection be limited, not by the constructions and details illustrated, but only by the proper scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A strap buckle having interconnectible body and tongue portions, each portion being adapted to be connected to a strap, the body portion comprising: a fiat tubular head open at each end to form a socket therethrough, a pair of posts extending through the body and within the socket portion thereof, and a flat strap eye having a finger outstanding from one edge thereof inserted into one side of the head socket and an orifice through the finger fitted about one of the posts, affixing the strap eye to the head; and the tongue portion comprising: a flat strap eye having a finger outstanding from one edge thereof and being adapted to be inserted into the other side of the head socket, said second mentioned finger including an angled side-slot adapted to be hooked about the other post when the finger is inserted into the socket, whereby to fasten the members together.

2. The buckle defined in claim 1, wherein each strap eye is formed as a flat, rectangular member having an opening adapted to hold the end of a flat strap.

3. The buckle defined in claim 1, including a spring extending across the socket portion of the head between the posts and adapted to bear against the end of the tongue finger when it is fastened to its post, whereby to prevent accidental release of the tongue from the body.

4. The buckle defined in claim 1, wherein the head is formed by a pair of flat opposing members having edge flanges, with one member lying against the other and being spaced apart by the flanges, and wherein said posts comprise rivets adapted to hold the members together.

5. The buckle defined in claim 1, including a barrier within the socket at one side of the post, whereby the finger cannot be inserted into the socket in a reversed position.

6. A strap buckle having interconnectible body and togue portions, each portion being adapted to be secured to a strap, wherein: the body portion comprises a flattened head open at one side to form a fiat, tubular socket therein, a strap connecting means at the opposite side thereof and a post extending through the body and substantially at the center of the socket therein; and the tongue portion comprises a flat, longitudinally-symmetrical T-shaped member having a thickness which is insutficient to prevent insertion of the same into the socket, with the arms of the member forming a strap connecting eye having a width substantially the width of the head and with the leg of the member forming an insert having a width less than the space in the socket between a side of the socket and the post to permit the leg to be inserted into the socket at one side of the post, and having an inclined side slot in the leg forming a hook-like opening adapted to receive the post and to connect the leg thereof with the post, and with the length of the leg being such that the arms of the member are closely adjacent to the mouth of the socket when the leg is connected to the post, whereby it is necessary to tip the member with respect to the head and to insert a portion of the arm at the slot side of the member into the socket to connect the leg to the post and to disconnect the leg from the post.

7. The buckle set forth in claim 6, and including a spring within the socket behind the post and biased towards the post to contact and hold the end of the leg of the tongue against the post when it is connected thereto.

8, In the organization set forth in claim 7, said spring being a U-shaped member adapted to lie in the slot with the base thereof extending transversely across the socket behind the post and with the legs thereof extending inwardly into the socket and being adapted to bear against the said strap connecting means.

9. A strap buckle having interconnectible body and tongue portions, each portion being adapted to be secured to a strap, wherein: the body portion comprises a flattened head open at one side to form a flat, tubular socket therein, a strap connecting means at the opposite side thereof, a post extending through the body and substantially at the center of the socket therein, and a barrier in the socket at one side of the post; and the tongue portion comprises a flat, longitudinally-symmetrical T-shaped member having a thickness which is insuflicient to prevent insertion of the same into the socket, with the arms of the member forming a strap connecting eye having a width substantially the width of the head and with the leg of the member forming an insert having a width less than the space in the socket between a side of the socket and the post to permit the leg to be inserted into the socket at one side of the post, and having an inclined side slot in the leg forming a hook-like opening adapted to receive the post and to connect the leg thereof with the post, and with the length of the leg being such that the arms of the member are closely adjacent to the mouth of the socket when the leg is connected to the post, whereby it is necessary to tip the member with respect to the head and to insert a portion of the arm at the slot side of the member into the socket to connect the leg to the post and to disconnect the leg from the post, and the barrier renders it necessary to insert the leg of the member into the socket at the side of the post opposite to the barrier.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 219,206 9/1879 Brent 213175 1,206,290 11/1916 Barker 24230 2,536,146 1/1951 Wiese 24206 X 3,181,215 5/1965 Eberhart 2475 FOREIGN PATENTS 12,741 7/ 1903 Austria. 30,657 of 1897 Great Britain.

218,779 7/ 1924 Great Britain.

WILLIAM FELDMAN, Primary Examiner.

20 E. SIMONSEN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A STRAP BUCKLE HAVING INTERCONNECTIBLE BODY AND TONGUE PORTIONS, EACH PORTION BEING ADAPTED TO BE CONNECTED TO A STRAP, THE BODY PORTION COMPRISING: A FLAT TUBULAR HEAD OPEN AT EACH END TO FORM A SOCKET THERETHROUGH, A PAIR OF POSTS EXTENDING THROUGH THE BODY AND WITHIN THE SOCKET PORTION THEREOF, AND A FLAT STRAP EYE HAVING A FINGER OUTSTANDING FROM ONE EDGE THEREOF INSERTED INTO ONE SIDE OF THE HEAD SOCKET AND AN ORIFICE THROUGH THE FINGER FITTED ABOUT ONE OF THE POSTS, AFFIXING THE STRAP EYE TO THE HEAD; AND THE TONGUE PORTION COMPRISING: A FLAT STRAP EYE HAVING A FINGER OUTSTANDING FROM ONE EDGE THEREOF AND BEING ADAPTED TO BE INSERTED INTO THE OTHER SIDE OF THE HEAD SOCKET, SAID SECOND MENTIONED FINGER INCLUDING AN ANGLED SIDE-SLOT ADAPTED TO BE HOOKED ABOUT THE OTHER POST WHEN THE FINGER IS INSERTED INTO THE SOCKET, WHEREBY TO FASTEN THE MEMBERS TOGETHER. 